Flood Risk Heightens in Northeast As Heat Sweeps The South
Trees emerge from flood waters along the Guadalupe River on July 4, 2025 in Kerrville, Texas. Getty Images
The National Weather Service has issued flood watches in parts of Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, Delaware, Rhode Island and New Jersey.
A warm and humid airmass that moved across the area ahead of the cold front is expected to develop into rain and thunderstorms Thursday night, which could bring up to 7 inches of rain to some parts of New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania.
The NWS warns the heavy rainfall could lead to excessive runoff that could flood rivers, creeks and streams, leading to flooding in urban areas with poor drainage. While cool rain falls on the northeast, the southeast is under heat advisories and extreme heat warnings.
The extreme heat warnings impact Arkansas, eastern Tennessee, Mississippi and Louisiana, with advisories extending to parts of Oklahoma, Texas, Alabalama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina.
The heat index could be as high as 116 degrees in portions of southeast Georgia and southeast South Carolina through 8 p.m. Thursday.
Get Forbes Breaking News Text Alerts: We're launching text message alerts so you'll always know the biggest stories shaping the day's headlines. Text 'Alerts' to (201) 335-0739 or sign up here : joinsubtext.com/forbes.
An increase of flash flooding events swept the country this summer as intense rainfall, increased moisture in the atmosphere and changing landscapes led to more disastrous floods impacting more people. A slow-moving storm brought over a foot of flooding to central Texas and pushed Guadalupe River levels up 27 feet in less than an hour, swamping the area of Kerr County and killing more than 130 people on July 4. Three people are still missing. In North Carolina, Tropical Storm Chantal flooded the Eno River and killed six people and, in New Mexico, at least three people died in floods in the mountain village of Ruidoso.
Flash floods are always more common in the summer months, when daytime heat helps fuel thunderstorms. Warmer air also holds more moisture, which can drive up rainfall amounts. The storms in North Carolina and Texas, for instance, were fueled by high levels of atmospheric moisture brought by Tropical Storms Berry and Chantal, respectively. Summer storms move more slowly than in other seasons, leaving rain to pile up in the same place instead of spreading across a wider surface area. Climate change is also to blame for worsening the already ideal conditions. Global warming means more evaporation, which increases moisture in the atmosphere, and heatwaves before heavy rain can dry out the landscape, leaving it less able to absorb large amounts of water when it rains, according to the Environmental Defense Fund. Is Flood Risk Rising?
Yes. The proportion of people across the world living in flood-prone areas has risen by 20% to 24% since 2000, according to NASA, and climate change is driving extreme rainfall and more intense hurricanes. Rising sea levels also increase tidal flood risk and storm surge, resulting in deeper floods that travel farther and last longer, according to the First Street Foundation. Further Reading Forbes Who Is To Blame For Texas Flooding Tragedy? Latest: Kristi Noem Defends FEMA's Response By Mary Whitfill Roeloffs Forbes What Tragedy Can Teach Us About Climate Preparedness By Chloe Sorvino Forbes Catastrophic Flooding In Texas — Were There Warnings? By Marshall Shepherd
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Fears for hiker missing for over a week after traveling along difficult Grand Canyon trail
A New Jersey hiker has been missing for over a week after he headed out on a difficult trail in the Grand Canyon – where 123,000 acres are currently ablaze. Thomas Daniel Gibbs, 35, of Freehold, NJ, was last heard from on July 22 at around noon after he was believed to have been hiking in the Grandview Trail and Horseshoe Mesa that day. Concerned family and friends raised the alarm on his silence six days later and reported him missing, the National Park Service said. Officials found his Tesla Cybertruck the same day in the Grandview Point parking lot on the South Rim. He is described as a white male of 6ft 1 inches in height, with brown hair and eyes. Meanwhile, the Dragon Bravo megafire has been raging across the Grand Canyon for over a month, singeing 123,434 acres, and has only been contained to 13 percent. At least 80 structures have been destroyed, including the historic Grand Canyon Lodge inside the park at the North Rim, after it was first reported on July 9. The Kaibab Lodge is also in jeopardy, reports 13 News. It swelled in size at the end of July, burning over 105,000 acres and subsequently becoming a megafire. Lightning strikes are believed to have ignited the fires, while a combination of strong winds, low humidity, and high daily temperatures spiralled their rapid expansion, officials said. The Grandview Trail is described as 'a rocky, exposed, strenuous trail' that requires hiking experience and caution, say park officials. Only experienced desert hikers are advised to take on the trail, and should come readily prepared with a detailed plan as there is no drinking water on the path. The most treacherous parts of the hike include the Bright Angel, South Kaibab, and Hermit Trails. In a statement to Fox News Sunday, the Grand Canyon National Park said that search efforts were still ongoing. 'Ground searchers extensively searched the Grandview Trail and its side drainages over the last two days. In addition, drones and search dogs from Coconino County Search and Rescue were utilized, along with high-angle technical rescue efforts near Grandview Point," the park said. 'The ongoing Dragon Bravo Fire did not hinder search efforts. Responders from Grand Canyon National Park, along with Coconino County Search and Rescue, worked collaboratively to ensure a thorough search of the area despite challenging conditions." Grand Canyon officials said that no evidence of Gibbs had been found to date and that search efforts had been scaled back in recent days because of a lack of clues and evidence to suggest he was in the greater Grandview Trail area. 'Investigations remain ongoing, and if additional clues or evidence are discovered, our search and rescue team will promptly follow up with search efforts in the field," they added. Park rangers are urging anyone who was also in the Grandview Trail area around July 22 and may have seen Gibbs or has information on his whereabouts to contact the NPS Investigative Services Branch Tip Line at 888-653-0009. Tips can also be submitted online at or via email at nps_isb@
Associated Press
an hour ago
- Associated Press
Iran orders a day of business and office closures to relieve electric grid in heat wave
TEHRAN (AP) — Authorities in Iran ordered government offices and banks across much of the country to close Wednesday as surging summer temperatures and a worsening water crisis strain the power grid. The state television announcement Tuesday is the second this summer. Iran hopes to ease electricity and water demand. As temperatures across the capital, Tehran, have exceeded 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit), authorities urged residents to avoid outdoor activities during peak heat hours and conserve water and energy. Iran produces some 62,000 megawatts of electric energy per hour at its peak but needs about 80,000 megawatts to meet its needs. Tehran and other cities already face two-hour electricity cuts every other day and experts warn cuts may increase to four hours. Protesters have gathered in front of Iran's national electric provider, Tavanir, demanding better grid management. Years of U.S. sanctions on Iran's oil and banking sectors, as well as difficulty in obtaining parts to operate and repair the electric grid, have made the country unable to properly maintain and upgrade its inefficient energy infrastructure. Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, the country's only nuclear power source, went online in 2011 with Russian help but produces only 1,000 megawatts per hour and goes offline for maintenance each year for two months. Southern Iran is bearing the brunt of the heat. Abadan registered temperatures exceeding 50 Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) on Sunday, ranking the city among the hottest places on Earth during this summer's heat wave. In recent years Tehran has contended with recurring heat extremes and weakened infrastructure. Wednesday's planned office closures echoes a similar one-day public holiday in July 2024 and a two-day action in 2023.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Japan sets new record high temperature of 41.8C
Japan logged two new heat records in a day on Tuesday, with the mercury hitting 41.6C and then 41.8C, the weather office said, warning temperatures may rise further still. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as climate change creates ever more erratic weather patterns, and Japan is no exception. The scorching temperatures in the city of Isesaki on Tuesday surpassed the previous record seen in the western Hyogo region of 41.2C only last week. Japan's summer last year was the joint hottest on record, equalling the level seen in 2023, followed by the warmest autumn since records began 126 years ago. Last week in tourist hotspot Kyoto the mercury hit 40C, the first time any of its observation points -- the oldest opened in 1880, the newest in 2002 -- had seen such a high, authorities said. Experts warn Japan's beloved cherry trees are blooming earlier due to the warmer climate -- or sometimes not fully blossoming -- because autumns and winters are not cold enough to trigger flowering. The famous snowcap of Mount Fuji was absent for the longest recorded period last year, not appearing until early November, compared with the average of early October. July was also the hottest since records began in 1898, the weather agency said Friday, with the average monthly temperature 2.89C above the 1991-2020 average. - South Korea sizzles - South Korea also saw its second-hottest July, with an average temperature of 27.1C, according the meteorological office, which has been collecting such data since 1973. The hottest July on record in South Korea was in 1994, when the average temperature reached 27.7 degrees Celsius. In Japan some dams and paddies nationwide are experiencing a water shortage, with farmers complaining that the sizzling heat combined with the lack of rain is slowing rice cultivation. Precipitation in July was low over wide areas of Japan, with northern regions facing the Sea of Japan experiencing record low rainfall, it added. The rainy season ended about three weeks earlier than usual in western regions of Japan, another record. Every summer, Japanese officials urge the public to seek shelter in air-conditioned rooms to avoid heatstroke. The elderly in Japan -- which has the world's second-oldest population after Monaco -- are particularly at risk. This year western Europe saw its hottest June on record, as extreme temperatures blasted the region in punishing back-to-back heatwaves, according to the EU climate monitor Copernicus. Dangerous weather stretched into July, with separate research estimating that climate change made the temperature up to 4C hotter, pushing the thermometer into deadly territory for thousands of vulnerable people and greatly worsening the projected death toll. Millions were exposed to high heat stress as daily average temperatures in western Europe climbed to levels rarely seen before -- and never so early in the summer. tmo-stu/fox
